ISHS Acta Horticulturae 758: X International Symposium on the Processing Tomato
THE INFLUENCE OF PLANTING TIME ON THE LYCOPENE CONTENT OF COMMERCIAL TOMATO VARIETIES FOR INDUSTRY FROM THE EBRO VALLEY |
| Authors: | J.I. Macua, I. Lahoz, J. Garnica, A. Santos, R. Arméndariz |
| Keywords: | colour, industrial quality, yield |
| Abstract:
The content of natural components in food that benefit human health is one of the aspects of particular interest in society, ever more demanding with respect to the quality of the products available. Among these contents, one of the most characteristic is lycopene, a natural component of tomatoes characterised by its high colouring capacity and its biological and antioxidant activity, which endows it with an anti-carcinogenic capacity and a preventive one in vascular diseases. Different studies have shown that the lycopene content in the tomato depends fundamentally on genetic (vegetable material) and environmental factors (i.e., mineral nutrient supply, soil conditions, crop seasons, etc.) and also on the degree of ripeness. The aim of this study was to analyse how the planting time affected mainly the lycopene content of different commercial tomato varieties for industry, in terms of both production parameters and industrial quality. To this end, a commercial variety high in lycopene was compared with one of the varieties generally used in our cultivation region, in plantings carried out between the beginning of May and mid-June. In spite of marked differences in yield and lycopene content between the varieties studied, a tendency for the lycopene content to increase when the planting date is delayed has been observed. There is also a link between lycopene content and colour, and higher ºBrix values in the variety with the higher lycopene content. | |
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